East Side Academy

by K. E. Woodward

  No POV

  “Double or nothing,” Lexi says with a grin to all the West Side guys around him.

  “Really, Lexi?” one of the guys asks.

  “You guys scared of an East Sider?” Lexi taunts. “You’re more than welcome to bow out of the race and take your money back if you want. But double your bet if you still want to try and take her home, there’s just a pathetic East Side boyfriend in the way.” The guys wanted their money back when they found out Arya has a boyfriend, but Lexi wants to have a little more fun.

  Lexi knows Arya, he knows she would never go home with any of these guys. It’s the only reason he’s comfortable with doubling the bet. This bet isn’t about who’s going to take her home, because she won’t go home with any of them. This is about testing her East Side boyfriend, seeing if he can handle a West Side girlfriend well out of his league.

  Half of them take their money back and the other half double their wager.

  “If I find out that any of you put something in her drink,” Lexi warns, “I will personally beat you myself.” Lexi won’t let any guy harm the girl he cares about, but he will make sure the guy who’s taken her from him sweats a bit.

  Arya

  “Someone’s popular,” Diana says, as I drop myself on the outdoor couch beside her. Teddy and Lincoln are out here too, lounging on the furniture with drinks in their hands.

  “It’s a bet,” I say, knowing when the third guy approached me that this wasn’t just a coincidence.

  “On taking you home?” Lincoln asks.

  “Something like that,” I say. I take a blanket and throw it over me, hiding underneath it and keeping warm.

  “And you’re hiding out here now?” Lincoln asks smiling.

  “Trying to,” I say. I’m also getting away from James for a bit. He’s being very overprotective, which is understandable given the situation, but I have to end this, and he won’t like how. I need to find Lexi.

  “Where’s James?” Teddy asks.

  “Inside,” I say. “He’s coming out soon, I told him I’d be with you guys. It was the only way he’d let me out of his sight.” And then I see James coming out the door to the patio, looking around. “Lincoln!” I say, standing up and throwing the blanket off. “Please come with me!” I reach a hand to him.

  “What is it, Arya?” Lincoln asks, just looking at my hand.

  “I’ll explain later,” I say. “Just please.”

  Lincoln gets up obediently and I loop my arm in his to go in the opposite direction of James, in through another set of doors, back into the house.

  James

  “Where’s she going?" I ask Diana and Teddy, seeing Arya leave on Lincoln's arm.

  "Just inside," Diana says. "Why don't you take a seat, James. You look tired."

  I flop down into a chair because I am tired. I am tired of all these West Side guys hitting on my girlfriend like it’s some sort of game. “She told you they’re betting on her?” I ask. Arya wouldn’t admit it to me, but I know she knows.

  “Relax, James,” Diana says. “Arya is pretty good at taking care of herself if you haven’t already noticed. Just let her handle these West Side guys for a bit.”

  Because she’s a West Sider and I’m not, is what Diana is really saying. Because Arya can handle these guys because she is one of them. But I can’t handle them because they just see me as an East Sider, an insignificant obstacle to get to her. ‘You can take the girl out of West Side, but you can’t take West Side out of the girl,’ Samson had once said.

  Arya

  "Thanks, Lincoln," I say when we get into the dining hall with a giant chandelier over us. It looks very out of place in comparison to the beer pong game going on underneath with way too many people in one room.

  It's an East Side vs. West Side match up, with George, Richard, and Malcolm on the East Side team.

  “George,” I say, putting a hand to his arm to get him to look at me.

  “Arya!” George yells and then hugs me, clearly having had a lot to drink.

  “George,” I say, pulling away and seeing his happy face smiling at me. “Where’s Lexi?”

  George scrunches his face, clearly thinking about it as best as a drunk person can, and then he asks. "How do you know Lexi?"

  “He’s a friend,” I say. “Now do you know where he is?”

  “Last I saw he was near the front of the house,” George says, pointing, surprisingly, in the right direction.

  “Thank you, George,” I say, patting his arm. I try to leave him, but he grabs my arm before I can get away. “George?”

  “He’s not just a friend, is he?” George says to me.

  I look at George. Him and Lexi are on the same hockey team. I think back to when George acted weird when he found out I was going on a date with James. Was that it? Did Lexi find out I was friends with George? Did they talk about me?

  “He is just a friend,” I say. “I just need to talk to him.”

  “Okay, Arya,” George says as he lets go of me. “Let me know if you need help or anything. I’m right here.” He knows. George knows that Lexi would flip when he found out I was involved with James. Too late, George. He already knows.

  “Thanks,” I say. “I’ll be fine.” And then I leave him to go to the other drunk beer pong players.

  Then I see Lincoln and Malcolm exchanging words and remember their last encounter at a party. “Lincoln,” I say, putting a hand on his arm, as I come up to them. But when I do, I see they are laughing with each other.

  Malcolm looks down at me, seeing my confused face. "Don't worry, Arya," Malcolm says. "I'm not going to punch him at this party."

  "Glad to hear it," I say. "Although I am curious how Lincoln can forgive you."

  Lincoln shrugs. “Not as terrible a guy as I thought. I guess I’m not always right when reading people.”

  “Did the Lincoln Abraham just admit that he wasn’t right?” I ask smiling.

  “Should have videotaped it,” Malcolm says. “It won’t happen again.”

  I'm about to drag Lincoln along with me again, a bit of protection against the guys, but then I see the top of Lexi's head in the next room, which looks like another lounging room, and figure I can make it there on my own. "I'll catch up with you guys in a bit," I say and head over to the next room to find the guy I know that will put a stop to this.

  Chapter 26 – Everything But Mine

  “Oh, you're the calm when my world is crashing / My heart, my blood, my passion / Why, tell me why / You're everything but mine” – Everything But Mine, Backstreet Boys

  Arya

  He's talking with two of his friends when I approach him, hockey guys as well. He smiles when he sees me, says something to his friends, and then comes up to me as they walk away. "Enjoying yourself?" Lexi asks smiling, taking a sip of his drink.

  “You have to stop this,” I say.

  “Stop what?” Lexi asks, pretending to know nothing.

  “You know what,” I say. “This must be really fun for you guys. How much is the grand prize, Lexi? Tell me.”

  Lexi laughs. “Doesn’t matter, does it? You won’t go home with any of them anyway. I know you. Boyfriend or not.” I cross my arms at him. “Don’t give me that look, Arya. Your boyfriend just needed to learn what it’s like to date a West Side girl.” Lexi comes right up to my face. “If he wants to date you, he better get used to dealing with the West Side crowd.” Lexi knows that while he could easily have forced the West Siders to call off the bet, James wouldn’t be able to. James is just an East Sider in their eyes, someone unimportant.

  “So this is about James,” I say. “You are trying to aggravate him.”

  “Is it working?” Lexi smiles and my frown just confirms his answer. “Come on, Arya. It’s just a bit of fun, there’s no harm in that.”

  “Fun for you guys!” I yell at him. “I constantly have guys flirting with me, grabbing onto me, giving me drinks. And now they are doing it in front of my boyfriend!”

  The
smile vanishes from Lexi’s face. Did he not realize what he was doing? That he was giving permission for all these guys to pull out all the stops to try and get with me. “You didn’t take any drinks from them?” Lexi asks seriously.

  “Of course not,” I say.

  "They touched you?" Lexi says, looking over me as if he could tell by just looking at me.

  "Nothing more than my shoulders and waist," I say to assure him, even though it's not true because I sense that Lexi is getting upset. I guess he thought the guys would just flirt and talk with me. He didn't think that they would feel me up as well. He was too focused on annoying James.

  “I’ll end it,” Lexi says seriously. “I’ll make them call it off. I’m sorry, Arya. I never meant anything to happen to you, I just…”

  “Wanted to piss off my boyfriend.” I raise an eyebrow at him.

  “Why him, Arya?” Lexi asks. “There is no way you are better suited to him over me.”

  “This isn’t about money, Lexi,” I say.

  “I know it’s not!” Lexi yells in my face. “But you know we are the same, Arya. Our families, our lifestyles, our religion. What would your dad say if he knew that you were putting me aside to date that East Sider?” I glare at him because we both know the answer to that question. “We are more than just a ‘nice looking’ couple, Arya. We can talk about anything, we get each other. Your boyfriend can’t understand you like I do, he never will. He’s not from our world. You know I’m right, Arya.”

  “I know he’s not from our world,” I say. “I know a relationship with him is more difficult, but he’s the one I want to be with, even if it’s not what everyone else wants.” Lexi likes the perfect girl I always tried to be when I was at West Side. James likes the real me.

  “I was your first kiss, Arya. I was the first guy you let in.” I look away from him and then he steps closer to me and I look back at him. “I was the first guy you let touch you like that. If my memory serves me correctly, you didn’t want me to stop. You grabbed my shirt…” Lexi says.

  “Stop!” I say to him, and he smiles.

  “I didn’t want to stop either. Never felt that way with a girl.” He takes a breath. “Are you really going to tell me that it meant nothing to you?”

  “It didn’t mean nothing to me,” I say. I’m going to go with honesty, because maybe then Lexi will finally understand. “At the time, it meant everything to me, Lexi. And yes, if I had stayed at West Side, it would be you and I together. But I went to East Side and I’m with James now and he means everything to me.”

  Lexi stares at me, piecing everything together. He downs the rest of his drink quickly, crunching the red plastic cup easily in his hands, trying to get his anger out. He drops the plastic mess to the ground. He’s angry and upset because I have confirmed that if it wasn't for East Side, if I hadn't transferred, he and I would be together. He's missing out on the girl he wanted. He's missing out on secret make-out sessions and a girlfriend that could match him in status and athletics. All because I left West Side. "Why'd you leave, Arya?" Lexi asks sternly.

  “I told you,” I say. “I needed a change.”

  “A change from what?” Lexi says, coming right up to my face. “You left for a reason, Arya. And I want to know what it is. Now.”

  “Lexi,” I say calmly, “you need to cool it.”

  Lexi laughs. "Tell me, Arya. Why? Why'd you leave? What's the reason that I don't get to have you? What's the reason that some East Sider gets to kiss you instead of me?" I just stare at Lexi, not knowing what to say. I can't tell him the truth. "Did you leave because of someone? Tell me, Arya, I know not all the guys at West Side are good guys. I know there are some jerks at our school."

  “Yet you sick them on me in your stupid game,” I say. “I shouldn’t be surprised though. This is what rich guys do for fun.”

  “I didn’t organize it,” Lexi says.

  “You didn’t stop it either,” I say. “And we both know who is top of the food chain at West Side.”

  “I’m sorry, Arya,” Lexi says. “You know I am. You know I hate the thought of some other guy touching you. Especially that East Sider.”

  “His name is James,” I say.

  “I really don’t care, Arya,” Lexi says. “I care about you. I want to know why you left. It was some guy at our school, wasn’t it?”

  “No, Lexi,” I say.

  “You’re lying,” Lexi says, coming up close to me. He puts a hand to my neck to force me to look up at him. “Tell me who it was. Did he hurt you? There’s no guy I’m afraid to take on, especially for you.”

  “There’s no guy, Lexi,” I say. “I left on my own choice.”

  “I hate you lying to me,” Lexi says to me. I hate me lying to you too, Lexi, but I don’t have another choice. The truth can’t come out.

  “Lexi!” one of his hockey friends calls to him, coming up to us. “Lexi, you have to come outside now!”

  “Why?” Lexi says, not taking his eyes off me, or his hand.

  “One of our guys is in a fight with a guy from East Side,” his friend says. “You have to stop it. Only you can.”

  "I think they can handle a little fistfight on their own," Lexi says, turning to his friend, but then we hear a giant crash from outside.

  “Lexi, come on!” his friend says, and his gaze falls on me. “I’m sure Arya won’t mind.” He smiles at me.

  “Fuck off,” Lexi says to him, and then there’s another crash from outside and lots of cheering. “Fuck this,” Lexi says under his breath. “This isn’t over, Arya,” he says to me. “You’re going to tell me who that guy is. Because I know there is one.”

  And then he leaves with his friend to go outside to the fight. And now it’s time for me to get out of here.

  I weave through the crowds of people. There’s a lot of people outside to watch the fight. I look through the sea of faces to try and find a familiar one.

  “Diana! Sarah!” I call out when I see them. I rush over to them. They’re at the back with no view of the fight. “What happened?”

  “Dudes are fighting over some girl,” Diana says. “Classic.”

  “Who?”

  "Francis from our grade and then some West Side guy," Sarah says. "Francis was hitting on his girl and he's not too happy about it."

  “Why are guys such idiots?” I say, looking around me.

  “Girls just mature faster,” Diana says. “Guys are always behind us. It’s science.”

  "Thank you for the lesson," I say, and then I see him in the crowd. The one guy that knows why I left West Side. Shaggy chestnut brown hair, blue eyes, taller than everyone. He is one guy I never want to see again. He's done so much damage, just his voice makes me angry. I can't let him see me. "Where's James?" I ask Diana and Sarah.

  “He went looking for you,” Sarah says. “Last I saw, he was in the house.”

  “Thanks,” I say. “Where is everyone else?”

  “Well,” Sarah says with a smile. “Eleanor and a hockey player seem to be enjoying themselves.” Sarah is looking over my shoulder and so I turn to follow her gaze. I see Eleanor making out with a guy beside the pool house, oblivious to the teenagers that have gathered to watch a fight in the backyard.

  “Glad she is having a good time,” I say, turning back to them.

  “Lincoln and Teddy were just here,” Sarah says. “I actually don’t know…” Out of nowhere, Lincoln and Teddy come up behind Diana and Sarah. Lincoln grabs Sarah and Teddy grabs Diana and they both throw the girls over their shoulders as they shriek, and I just laugh.

  “We need more girls for our game,” Teddy says.

  “Are you coming Arya?” Lincoln asks.

  “No thanks.” I hold up my hands. “I’m going to find James,” I say. And try to get out of this place as fast as possible.

  “Enjoy your time alone at home!” Diana calls as the guys take them away. Oh lord, being at home, alone with James, away from all these people sounds like paradise right now.

  I
rush towards the house to try and find my ticket home.

  “Arya!” I hear when I walk inside, and I am so relieved to see James. He’s in the kitchen, between the fridge and the island. I run around the island to him, and just hug him on his side. “Good to see you too.” And then I just lean into him, seeing that he had been talking to Samson and Bobbi, who are now having their own conversation. “I looked for you.”

  “I know,” I say,. “I was just…”

  “Dealing with the West Side guys?” James says, looking down on me. I can tell he’s upset that it’s me that had to deal with them and not him. We’re from different worlds. He always thought I couldn’t handle his, but can he handle mine?

  “Can we get out of here?” I say to him.

  “No way!” Malcolm says, coming up to us. Judging by the number of people coming back inside, the fight must be over. “You have been on Arya’s hip for half the night. You are joining us for beer pong, you are our best shot!”

  I want to tell James I have an empty house just waiting for us, but I don’t want to build his hopes up for something that’s not going to happen. James looks exhausted, fighting off too many guys, but that should be over now. I trust Lexi.

  “I’m exhausted, dude,” James says, a tight grip on my waist to hold me close.

  “You have yet to play,” Malcolm says. “And we would crush these West Siders if you did.”

  James rolls his eyes. “Fine,” James says. “Give us a minute.”

  Malcolm takes the hint and walks into the dining room where I know they are playing beer pong.

  "See you guys," Samson says to us, taking Bobbi away who gives us a kind smile and wave, leaving James and me alone.

  James turns to face me, putting me against the fridge, while he just looks at me, no outward distractions. He keeps his hands on my waist, touching the exposed skin. “I’m sorry, James,” I say.